Lions Add Former Chiefs Cornerback in Move to Boost Secondary

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Lions head coach Dan Campbell.

The Detroit Lions are adding some depth to their secondary by adding a cornerback who is coming off a standout season with their local UFL team.

The team announced that they signed D.J. Miller, a second-year player who spent time with the Kansas City Chiefs before moving to the Michigan Panthers. Miller helped lead his team to a league title this season and now will compete for a spot on Detroit’s final roster.

Lions Making Moves on Defense

After splitting his college career between Kent State and Iowa State, Miller went undrafted in 2024 and spent time with the Kansas City Chiefs in the summer before ultimately being released. Christian Booher of SI.com noted that Miller will now have the chance to stand out in an injury-struck secondary for the Lions.

“Miller will help the Lions’ cornerback depth, as Terrion Arnold and Ennis Rakestraw have both dealt with injuries early in camp,” Booher wrote. “Arnold is recovering from a low-grade hamstring injury, while Rakestraw has been dealing with a chest contusion and was evaluated for a shoulder injury after practice Sunday.”

Depth could be an important factor for a Lions team that suffered significant injury losses on defense in 2024. The team has already taken some big hits this year as well, placing rookie safety Dan Jackson on injured reserve after he suffered a leg injury on Sunday. The designation means Jackson won’t be able to take the field in the 2025 season.

The Athletic’s Colton Pouncy also suggested that Rakestraw’s injury could keep him off the field for a stretch to start the season.

“Rakestraw left practice Sunday with a shoulder injury during a tackling drill,” Pouncy wrote. “Campbell said the team is getting it checked out, but added that the second-year cornerback will be ‘out a while at best.’ Sounds like he could end up on IR after further testing.”

Miller knows something about injuries. When asked about his biggest challenge in college, suffering an injury that led him to transfer from Iowa State to Kent State.

“The hardest moment to overcome in my life was my injury and transfer from Iowa State, played a lot on me mentally and emotionally and I’m proud of myself for being able to climb out of it,” he told NFL Draft Diamonds last year.

Lions Praised for ‘Deep’ Secondary

It could be difficult for Miller to crack the 53-man roster, with the Lions bringing back a deep secondary that includes D.J. Reed, Rock Ya-Sin, Khalil Dorsey, and Amik Robertson at nickel cornerback.

Dorsey has also been hurt, but Pouncy suggested he will be ready to start the season and that the rest of the depth chart is close to set in stone.

“Elsewhere, if Dorsey is ready to go within the first month, you have to think the Lions will try to avoid an IR stint. Sounds like things are trending that way,” Pouncy wrote. “The rest are roster locks at a fairly deep position.”

The injuries could at least give an opening for Miller to squeak onto the practice squad to start the season, should he miss the active roster.

Nathan Dougherty is a sports reporter covering the NFL for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Buffalo Bills, Detroit Lions and Miami Dolphins. Previously he wrote for the Rochester Business Journal and served as the assistant editor of athletic trade magazines Coaching Management, Athletic Management and Training & Conditioning. He is based out of Rochester, New York, and loves everything football. More about Nathan Dougherty